''Philoponella congregabilis'', sometimes referred to as the little humped spider, is an Australian species of communal spider that, like other species of

Uloboridae Uloboridae is a family of non-venomous spiders, known as cribellate orb weavers or hackled orb weavers. Their lack of venom glands is a secondarily evolved trait. Instead, they wrap their prey thoroughly in silk, cover it in regurgitated digestive ...

, does not use

venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

. Instead it wraps its prey in

spider silk Spider silk is a protein fibre spun by spiders. Spiders use their silk to make Spider web, webs or other structures, which function as sticky nets to catch other animals, or as nests or cocoons to protect their offspring, or to wrap up prey. ...

to crush it to death. The spider then goes on to regurgitate digestive fluid into the shroud, then consuming the pre-digested liquid. The specific name ''congregabilis'' translates to "community dwellers". The generic name ''Philoponella'' alludes to their industrious nature, "loving labour".

Description

The male is up to long, the female . Colour varies, from pale cream to a darker orange or brown. The abdomen features a prominent hump.

Web

These small spiders build untidy looking orb webs, connected to other webs in a community with others of the same species. Webs are not upright, being horizontal or sloping. Debris often litters the communal web, making observation of the spider difficult. The habitat is often eaves or window sills in houses, garages or sheds. The more natural habitat is shady places such as low shrubbery. Food is small arthropods, mostly insects.

Habitat

Found natively in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, ''P. congregabilis'' is () one of 73 spider species - and specifically 50 Australians - established in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. ''P. congregabilis'' has been introduced to the

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

area.

Egg sac and juveniles

The female produces an egg sac around long and fairly flat and elongate in shape. The outer covering is grey or brown of a rough texture. The egg sacs are suspended in the communal web, tapering at the ends and having several lateral points. It may be mistaken for vegetative debris or digested food. They contain around 20 small spherical non-sticky eggs. Juveniles stay in the community web for a relatively long period, often joining the community of spiders or moving to form a new colony.

Taxonomy

The species was described as ''Uloborus congregabilis'' by

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

in 1916 from a specimen from New South Wales. It was transferred to the genus

Philoponella ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

Lehtinen Lehtinen is a Finnish surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alex Lehtinen (born 1996), Finnish footballer * Dexter Lehtinen (born 1946), American attorney and law professor * Eino Lehtinen (1900–2007), Finnish centenarian, one of t ...

in 1967.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2342057 Uloboridae Spiders of Australia Spiders described in 1916 Taxa named by William Joseph Rainbow